'Annual Salary 2.3 Billion Won' LG Electronics CEO: "AI Talent Can Earn More Than the President"

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"To recruit artificial intelligence (AI) talent, we can offer an annual salary of $1 million, and candidates must be willing to accept earning more than I do."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Jo Joo-wan, CEO of LG Electronics, expressed his commitment to recruiting AI talent during a meeting with Korean correspondents in Silicon Valley, USA, on the 11th (local time).

CEO Jo embarked on a business trip to the western United States, a global battleground for big tech and the region where AI is most intensely discussed worldwide. Over the course of about a week, he plans to secure AI specialists, hold global investor briefings, and attend the Microsoft CEO Summit, formulating an AI acceleration strategy across all business areas.

On this day, CEO Jo visited Silicon Valley to attend LG Electronics' 'Tech Conference' aimed at recruiting AI talent. This event is a company briefing targeting AI experts working at big tech companies and startups in Silicon Valley, Seattle, and Los Angeles (LA). CEO Jo explained, "We plan to hire research fellows, executives, or at least leaders capable of leading teams," adding, "We are particularly looking for leaders in security, where many important trends have recently emerged."

He did not specify the scale of AI talent recruitment for this year. However, he said, "Quantitatively, we have established the lineup," and added, "It doesn't seem to be just about increasing numbers; now we need qualitatively heavyweight talent." He emphasized that LG Electronics is willing to offer an annual salary of "up to $1 million" to recruit AI talent and that candidates "must be willing to earn more than I do." According to data disclosed by LG Electronics last year, CEO Jo's annual salary reached 2.34 billion KRW. He also mentioned that it might be time to consider restricted stock units (RSUs), a performance-based compensation system paid to employees at big tech companies.

Amid intensifying AI technology competition centered on big tech, CEO Jo confidently stated, "LG Electronics is also a beneficiary of AI." He said, "Although the home appliance business is considered a traditional business, we have accumulated a lot of AI technology, and above all, we have hundreds of millions of units (sold devices)," adding, "This will be a powerful weapon to accelerate our AI."

LG Electronics sells 100 million devices annually, and assuming a product lifespan of seven years, the total number of LG Electronics products sold worldwide currently reaches 700 million units. LG Electronics explained that the usage data accumulated through interactions with customers via these products amounts to 70 billion hours.

He mentioned that the 700 million devices serve as AI customer touchpoints and platforms, and the vast amount of data over time can significantly contribute to advancing AI. CEO Jo explained, "It is not only by making AI semiconductors that one gains attention and potential," adding, "This large base is precisely why big tech companies are sending us love calls."

LG Electronics is collaborating with Microsoft to enhance work efficiency using AI and to develop smart appliances, and is jointly developing extended reality (XR) headsets with Meta, the parent company of Facebook. He explained, "In the past, we unilaterally asked big tech companies to buy our products, but now we are moving toward a relationship where we can have strategic discussions as equal partners."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 13th, CEO Jo will consecutively meet senior investment officers from leading global institutional investors based in San Francisco to host corporate briefings. At this briefing, he plans to emphasize that LG Electronics is moving more actively than any other company regarding AI trends, a common industry topic.

From the 14th to the 16th, he will attend the 'AI Summit' hosted by Microsoft in Seattle and meet Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft. Without giving specific details, he smiled and said, "There are some deep conversations I need to have (with CEO Nadella)." The Microsoft CEO Summit is a private invitation-only event where CEOs and stakeholders from leading global companies exchange views on economic and business environments and industry trends.

LG Electronics is preparing a smart home package service that bundles AI functions within the home, based on the smart home AI agent unveiled at CES in January. CEO Jo said, "We will launch a package in the second half of the year where the AI agent converses with users to plan trips and schedules." He also explained, "The hub role of smart homes where AI is implemented will be possible not only through TVs but also other devices," adding, "To this end, we are pursuing the acquisition of companies with Internet of Things (IoT) connectivity technology."

Regarding the $60 million investment in Bear Robotics, headquartered in Silicon Valley last month, he said, "We have been researching robots for a long time," adding, "Currently, robots focus on logistics and services, but we are opening possibilities for a software-centered robot era (SDR) for home use and wearables in the future."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.